Cleveland State (8-12 / 3-5 Horizon League) vs. RMU (8-8 / 3-5 Horizon League)
Tuesday, March 12, 2021 • 2:30 p.m.
North Athletic Complex • Moon Township, Pa.
 
Cracker Jack & Sunflower Seeds
 
- The RMU softball team welcomes Cleveland State to the North Athletic Complex Tuesday for a mid-week doubleheader to open a six-game homestand. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
 
- The Colonials posted a 1-3 (.250) mark in their first Horizon League road series this past weekend against Green Bay. The Phoenix opened King Park by taking the first three games of the series against RMU before the Colonials earned a 6-5 win in the nightcap of Sunday's doubleheader.
 
- Graduate student Natalie Higgins hit .333 (4-for-12) in the series at Green Bay with a pair of runs and six RBI. She also homered twice, including a solo shot in RMU's 6-5 victory that tied the game, 4-4, in the sixth inning. An inning later, Higgins drove home two more with an RBI single to left that helped lift the Colonials to the win.
 
- Freshman Faith Miller started both games of Sunday's split at Green Bay and finished 4-for-6 (.667) at the dish with two runs, two RBI and a pair of doubles. She collected her first multi-hit effort in game one against the Phoenix, going 3-for-3 with a double.
 
- Higgins and senior Alaina York are the only two Colonials to start each of RMU's 16 games on the 2021 season. York is hitting .256 (11-for-43) for the season with eight runs, three doubles, a triple and eight RBI.
 
- RMU owns a record of 7-2 (.778) when scoring at least five runs in a game but is 1-6 (.167) when allowing five or more runs.
 
- Junior Dana Vatakis owns a record of 3-4 from the pitching circle for RMU with a 3.11 earned run average (ERA). She owns five complete games in her seven starts and has struck out 36 in 47.1 innings of action.
 
- RMU welcomes Oakland to the North Athletic Complex for a four-game series after hosting the Vikings Tuesday. The Colonials and Golden Grizzlies will play doubleheaders Friday, March 26, and Saturday, March 27.

CLEVELAND STATE LINKS
- Live Stats
- RMU Athletics Gameday App
 
The All-Time Series (Cleveland State) – The Colonials and Vikings are no strangers on the diamond, as the two programs will meet for the 42nd and 43rd occasions Tuesday. Cleveland State owns a 25-16 (.610) advantage in the all-time series. During the 2019 season, CSU and RMU split four games. The two programs split a pair of contests in the 2019 Liberty Softball Classic in early March before closing out the month by splitting a doubleheader at the North Athletic Complex March 27, 2019.
 
Ducks On The Pond – Graduate student Natalie Higgins helped the Colonials earn a 6-5 victory in the final tilt of a four-game series at Green Bay by going 3-for-4 with a run and four RBI. Her two-out single drove home a pair, snapped a 4-4 tie and also provided the eventual game-winning run. Higgins is hitting .476 (10-for-21) this season with runners in scoring position and owns a team-high five RBI with two outs. In addition, she is a perfect 6-for-6 at the dish with a runner on third and less than two outs.
 
Mirror Image – RMU enters Tuesday's doubleheader with Cleveland State leading the Horizon League in RBI (78) while ranking third in home runs (11). The Vikings, meanwhile, are tied atop the leaderboard with Purdue Fort Wayne for round trippers (12) while being tied for second in the circuit for RBI (75) with UIC.
 
Join The Club – Graduate student Natalie Higgins notched her second four-RBI game of the 2021 season Sunday at Green Bay as well as the third of her career. She is the 12th RMU student-athlete in program history to drive in four or more runs in a game at least three times. The school record is five, which is held by former Colonials Kali Byers (2003-06) and Olivia Lorusso (2015-18). Higgins enters Tuesday's doubleheader with the Vikings leading the Horizon League in RBI (21) and ranks second all-time in program history in career RBI with 107.

Follow The Colonials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

Tweet #RMUnite